Foreign Minister Julie Bishop is in Ukraine and at 9.30am Australian EST time, signed an agreement with Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin that will provide a legal basis for Australia's presence in that country.

The arrangement will not come into effect until signed off by President Petro Poroshenko and passed by the Ukraine Parliament, which could take some time.

Once operating, it will allow Australian officials freedom of movement in the Ukraine, allow them to work with local authorities and allow equipment and supplies to brought into the country. It will also cover legal matters such as liability.

President Poroshenko confirmed in a statement that his nation planned to sign a joint agreement with the Australian government that would cover Australia participation in the mission to protect the international investigation.

Earlier, President Poroshenko, Dutch Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans and Ms Bishop also signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the investigation of MH17.

Under that MoU, the Ukraine delegated authority to Holland, as the nation that lost the majority of victims in the crash, to investigate the case.

''Countries whose citizens died in this terrible tragedy are scattered around the world. That's why we must be united to ensure co-ordination of actions in holding the efficient investigation and submitting its results to the world,'' the Head of State emphasised.

He thanked Australia and the Netherlands, ''with whom we are increasingly efficiently coordinating our actions and elaborating concrete mechanisms to ensure transparent and independent international investigation''.

The force is being put together in negotiation with the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which has people on the ground at the crash site.

Ten British citizens and four Germans were among the passengers on MH17. Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron has been sharply critical of Russia, telling Vladimir Putin in a phone call that the Russian President "must change course and work to bring stability to eastern Ukraine", according to a British spokesman.

German chancellor Angela Merkel has said that "Russia is responsible for what is happening in Ukraine at the moment".

Like the Netherlands, Britain and Germany are members of the NATO alliance with the US.

International officials have told Fairfax Media that the United States said that it was prepared to contribute if asked, but the Dutch and Australians have decided not to ask for an American contribution.

It has not yet been decided whether the police would be armed or whether they would be accompanied by military forces to provide security.

However, Australia has been working to negotiate terms with Kiev, Moscow and also the self-declared government in Donetsk, so that it would be safe enough to deploy officers. Mr Abbott has also spoken with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, who welcomed the announcement about the 50 AFP officers.

Mr Abbott said he "would be very careful about putting any Australian personnel into harm's way", but that the crash site had become more "permissive" in recent days, with European officials now able to visit the site.

In their most recent conversation, Mr Abbott said Mr Putin had said all the right things and confirmed the importance of securing the site..

"On the site, it is still clear that nothing is happening without the approval of the armed rebels,'' Mr Abbott added.

"President Putin gave me assurances that he wanted to see the families of the victims satisfied. He wanted to see, as a father himself, grieving families given closure. So far he has been as good as his word."

The Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf has flagged the possibility that members of that country's airborne brigade could be deployed alongside military police.

And Volksrant reported the Dutch government was "seriously considering" a group of soldiers and policemen, on condition the group is part of a multi-national force.

And overnight, news wire Agence France Presse reported that Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said 40 unarmed Dutch police would be sent to the crash site to stabilise the area.

The agency quoted OSCE spokesman Michael Mociurkiw saying that an Australian federal police officer was reportedly "sussing the security and then possibly coming here" to the crash site in Ukraine.

At the same time, the European Union is stepping up sanctions on 15 Ukrainian and Russian individuals and 18 entities because of their role in the ongoing Ukraine crisis.

83 comments

Can we honestly expect men who happily shoot down civilian planes to behave while we're examining the debris? Sending Australians into a serious full-on warzone is asking for trouble.If we had a different PM I'd feel much easier if (God forbid) something ugly happens.Mr Abbott seems to think that he's in a boxing match with Mr Putin.The 'crash or crash through' ploy may have worked when he was Opposition leader but it is not appropriate for international diplomacy.

I'd suggest now is the time for the Libs/Nats to replace him with a cooler head.

Commenter

Harry Ficus

Date and time

July 25, 2014, 10:30AM

actually Putin and Abbott sort of look like each other as did Abbott and Gillard did. Has Tony Abbott got a secret power to look like people he is fighting with. can't wait for his Clive palmer look.

Commenter

kellybellyfonte

Date and time

July 25, 2014, 10:48AM

Australia is going to have to be very careful. What if one of the Fed Police gets shot at and returns fire and then a gun battle breaks out.

What next ? A little scuffle with Russia. How much will that cost in lives and money ?

It's time for very cool heads.

Commenter

Rod

Location

the Coast

Date and time

July 25, 2014, 10:53AM

I can't believe they want to send 50 Australian policeman into a war zone. That's pretty brave of some people!

Commenter

Andy

Date and time

July 25, 2014, 10:58AM

The road to hell is paved with good intentions.

Not that political opportunism should be seen as 'good intentions'...

Not many up sides to this move- plenty down though. What happens when one of our police gets hit by a sniper for example?

Commenter

Sausagefingers

Date and time

July 25, 2014, 10:59AM

Harry, I'm of no political persuasion in particular, but I consider that Tony Abbot is perfectly suitable for this task. Only a head kicker is capable of getting through to Putin. There is no appeasing the Russian leader who has clearly nailed his flag to the mast in his dealings with Ukraine. I can only imagine that if Kevin Rudd was still in the Lodge he'd still be forming a committee to examine the options. In all fairness, Abbot and Julie Bishop in particular should be commended on their firm, expeditious and dignified response to this tragedy. Other governments would do well to follow their example.

Let me clarify something for you. The separatists are civilians who had to take up arms to defend themselves against the onslaught by the Ukrainian army, which seeks to massacre as many people as possible in order for the remaining ones to become so scared that they would run for their lives, and the only place they can run to is Russia.

The goal of the Ukrainian neo-Nazi government is to clear Eastern Ukraine of its Russian speaking population because this population is standing in their way of creating a pure Ukrainian republic. Now they believe they finally can do so, because they have finally managed to grab the power and will not stop until they satisfy their hate.

Don't be ignorant, know the truth!

Commenter

Daniel

Date and time

July 25, 2014, 11:35AM

Exactly my sentiments voiced on another website------boy! was I howled down. Should have known better.

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